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The Kindergarten Operetta
Written February 7, 2001

By the time that I entered kindergarten, I could already read.  I assume that I had learned by paying attention when my mother or father read aloud to me.  By observing which black marks on the page seemed to go with which words, I figured out the code.

One day, so the story goes, my parents noticed me reading aloud to myself.  But I might have simply been remembering the story and pretending to read it, so they gave me something that I hadn't seen before.  I read that too.  They were proud.

For six months in 1952, our family lived in Newark, Ohio, and I started kindergarten there.  Then we moved to Richwood, Ohio, in November, and I transferred to that kindergarten.  In both places, the teachers were surprised to find that they had a literate student in their class, and they sometimes had me show off my abilities (perhaps to inspire others to learn the trick, too).

Richwood kindergartern operetta

I had been in Richwood only a few months when the kindergarten class put on its annual show:  an "operetta" called The Children of Old Mother Goose.  It was staged on Friday, April 17, 1953 at the school auditorium, located in the Richwood High School building (later to become the North Union Middle School).


I was assigned the role of Dr. Foster, the secretary to the Children of Mother Goose.  For purposes of exposition of the plot, I was to read a document to the Children at the start of their annual convention.

The Children agree that they need a new mother because Old Mother Goose has been chasing her geese too much, so they vote to join the Old Woman in the Shoe.  In Act II, they discover that the Old Woman is cruel to them and decide that they want to return to Mother Goose after all.  In Act III, Mother Goose welcomes her children home, and everyone is happy again.

My father's office manager, Hazel Mae Bowersmith, typed up my part in all capital letters and put it inside a ledger book.

For another photo:

 
As far as I can remember, the show went as smoothly as one could expect.  (We were a bunch of kindergarten children, after all.)  The teacher, Georgia Cramer, wrote in the program that it was "an experience long to be remembered."  She thanked the mothers for their help.  "You were so kind and willing to assist in every way.  Without you, our Operetta could not have been a success.  With you, we have tried hard and feel that our first real 'show' has been a success."

For members of the RHS Class of 1965 who might still remember, here's an alphabetical list of the cast.

 One of 3 Little Farmers       

Bobby

 Allinder

 Polly Put the Kettle On

Tami

 Baker

 Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son

Stevie

 Ballinger

 See Saw Margery Daw

Sheryl

 Berry

 Curly Locks

Barbara

 Bugg

 One of Three Fiddlers

Randy

 Chapman

 Jack (of Jack & Jill)

Danny

 Converse

 One of 3 Little Farmers

Jerry

 Douglas

 King Cole

Kelly

 Drake

 One of 3 Little Mothers

Kathleen

 Ehle

 One of 3 Little Mothers

Kittie

 Erwin

 Humpty Dumpty

Terry

 Erwin

 Little Miss Muffet

Mary Jo

 Fetter

 One of 3 Little Mothers

Lorraine

 Gilkerson

 Old Woman in the Shoe

Lynne

 Glass

 Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater

Mike

 Hamilton

 One of Three Fiddlers

Spencer

 Jordan

 Daffy Down Dilly

Sherry

 Keigley

 Muffin Man

Mike

 Ledley

 Little Bo Peep

Sue

 Livingston

 Billy Boy

Bobby

 Marvin

 Mary Quite Contrary

Judy

 Miller

 Jack Be Nimble

Harry

 Millington

 Polly Flinders

Pamela

 Minke

 Tin Soldier

Bill

 Mowery

 Jack Horner

Johnny

 Oberdier

 Old Mother Hubbard

Trudy

 Oman

 Mother Goose

Linda

 Parish

 Mayor of Toytown

Iver

 Phallen

 Page

Ricky

 Ridge

 Mary with the Little Lamb

Laurann

 Reese

 Page

Denny

 Roberts

 Bobby Shaftoe

Terry

 Rockhold

 Peter Pumpkin Eater's Wife

Lois

 Smith

 Tom Tucker

Criss

 Somerlot

 One of Three Fiddlers

David

 Stallsmith

 Jill (of Jack & Jill)

Dianne

 Steele

 Yankee Doodle Dandy

Nicky

 Taylor

 Dr. Foster

Tommy

 Thomas

 Little Boy Blue

Nicky

 Walker

 Jack in the Box

Ernie

 Wheeler

 One of 3 Little Farmers

Charles

 Wood

 Between acts, there were vocal solos by Sherry Keigley and Pamela Minke (whose mother Ruth Minke played the piano for the show), and also a tap dance by Sheryl Berry.

TBT

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